by Cynthia Dane
“And other things.”
“We don’t discuss the other things around here.” Judith returned to him, rose hitting the tip of her nose. “Unless you want to.”
“I’d rather not.” Miguel flicked the other side of the rose. “I’d rather talk about other things. Like you.”
“Me?”
He dared to slip his arm around her waist. She let him. The softness of the cashmere threatened to do him in. When do I get to have you? Someone was waking up between his legs. “Yes, you. Tell me about yourself, Judith. Tell me the truth, tell me a lie… it doesn’t matter. But if you lie, it better be a good one.”
Her head cocked to the left before she laughed loudly enough to wake up the neighbors miles away. “I’ll tell you the truth.”
Whether or not that was a lie in itself, Miguel did not know, but the tale Judith wove as they walked was certainly fascinating. She didn’t finish a degree. She went straight into the adult industry, where she tried various things until working her way up to the Château, and she wasn’t stopping anytime soon. She had traveled to various places around the world, depending on where men wanted to take her. Mostly Europe, South America, and East Asia. Never Monaco, though. Perhaps she should go someday. Is that prompting me to take you? Judith would be beyond gorgeous sitting at a café, shopping for designer wear, or blowing on his dice for good luck. Taking her out on a yacht would be a highlight of Miguel’s day. I’d love to see that hair blowing in the Monacan breeze. Judith would have no trouble looking like his girlfriend if they went walking down the street outside his condo.
Looking like his girlfriend…
What the fuck is my problem? That was ridiculous. Miguel did not bother with such things. Let alone with a…
Whatever he wanted to call her.
“Anyway, I haven’t been anywhere in a few months. My patron took me to Mexico for the holidays, but I’m afraid I’m not going anywhere soon.”
“Why’s that?”
Judith sat on a stone bench in the crook of a hedge. Miguel remained standing. From his vantage, he could see the moonlight swirling on top of her golden head… and in her cleavage. Bless them both. “My patron moved to Dubai. Suffice to say, I’m a single woman in this world now.”
“Is that so?” Wheels were already spinning in Miguel’s head. So she is available to a patron? Depending on how tonight went, it might not be a bad idea to put in a bid for her retainer. Miguel did like having one girl on call wherever he went. Judith was the only one he had auditioned for the part so far, but he couldn’t imagine anyone being much better. In the Château alone, there wasn’t anyone else who struck his fancy. Not like Judith did.
“Uh huh.” Her fingers danced through strands of hair. “Unfortunate, isn’t it?” She batted her eyelashes at him. Why, was she courting him?
“Most certainly. I can’t imagine men not throwing themselves at you.”
“They could throw themselves harder,” Judith said with a sigh. “You know what I mean.”
Indeed he did. “So what does being a patron entail, exactly?” He extended his hand for her to take. Once those fingers wrapped around his, he helped her up, and they continued their walk through the maze. “Out of curiosity.”
“Exactly what it sounds like. We enter an open-ended contract that you pay a once a month fee to honor. No other charges, for any service, and you get priority for my time. So you can be sure that such a monthly fee is large.”
“I wouldn’t be shocked to find that out.”
“Of course, I meet with other clients. I have a job to do.”
“Indeed.” Miguel was under no illusion that this would be a monogamous relationship. That’s what absconding her to the civilian world to be his actual girlfriend meant. I know exactly what I’m getting into with professional women. “I’m sure there are other perks, though. Besides your lovely face whenever I want it.”
“Why, are you thinking about applying to be my patron?” Her sweet voice was so fake, and yet Miguel fell for it.
“I make no promises.”
“Certainly not. But what if I told you that you get to give me all the presents you want? And take me away from here whenever you feel like it? Regular clients can’t do that. Not officially. I’d have to sneak out, and could get in big trouble for that.”
Miguel only half heard her. His eyes were focused on that ass swaying back and forth in front of him. The more her hair hovered above it, too, the more he wanted to grab her hips and grind that ass against his cock. To say he was ready to take this upstairs was an understatement. Or, hell, he would take her right here!
“So you’d be like my girlfriend, only not really.”
“To say I would definitely favor you above all others… isn’t that enough?” Judith leaned against a steady hedge, one finger hanging on to her bust so he had a grand view of her breast. Everything but the nipple, anyway. I can see them poking out, though. Either she was aroused or it was cold. “I know how you alpha males work. You want to be #1 in every woman’s life.”
“You alpha males?”
“You trying to tell me you aren’t one? I know you guys like I know my body.” Her finger pulled, releasing her garment from her chest. Please let that be arousal. Two perfectly erect nipples awaiting him in the night? Miguel wondered what the stars had to say about that. “Everything about you screams alpha male, Mr. Bolivar. Your need to be in charge. The way you carry yourself. Spending your money on women as if it’s nothing. I’m sure it is nothing, but you also know I will not hesitate to ask for whatever I want – as long as it makes sense, of course. Some men as rich as you are careful with their money anyway. Even when I present them with a wet mouth and pussy. Not you. You wanted to fuck me so badly with that stiff cock that money was no issue. I don’t care about that, but it does tell me a lot about you.” Her smile was part menacing, part welcoming. I like both. “Let me tell you, Miguel, Mr. Monaco… I like alpha men. I always know where I stand with you guys.”
He approached her, one hand reaching above her head and grabbing greenery. “Where do you stand with me, Judith?”
Breath as delicious as honey blew across his cheek. “I don’t stand at all. I kneel, I bend over, or I lie down. Whatever you want.”
“What do you want?”
Judith took his other hand and brought it up to her breasts. He didn’t wait for permission. Miguel snatched the nearest one, reveling in how soft and warm it felt in the palm of his hand. Judith gasped. There went the control he had been exercising. If she looked down, she would see an old friend trying to reach out to her.
“I want you, of course.”
Miguel knew how it worked. Women pretended to be his girlfriend. Pretended to be all over him. To be fair, many of them were, but they all played it up to a point. They wanted him to feel so comfortable and at ease – and aroused – that he would throw his whole wallet at them. He didn’t begrudge his paid partners of this fact. They were making a living as all people did. Not their fault if he couldn’t exercise control once in a while. Except he could. He almost always did. For some reason, Judith had managed to turn him into a lusty beast two meetings in a row. What did she do besides show him her body? I am a mess. A wonderful, needy mess. He needed her. Now. No more flirting. No more coy looks. No more flashes of tits and ass in the hopes he would want her. It was here. He wanted her. Now, now, now!
“You drive a hard bargain, Judith.”
She stroked his cheek, fingers lingering on his sharp facial hair. “Speaking of driving hard…”
“You had to go there?”
“I want to put every image of us getting dirty in your head.”
“Because then you definitely get paid, right?”
She snorted. “You make it sound like I don’t desire you like you desire me. You would be mistaken. I told you. I love sex. I love men. I love having sex with men, especially alpha men like you, Miguel. Don’t think too much about it. Do whatever feels natural to you. I am up for anything.”
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Damn. Her.
“Even right here?” He brought her into his arms, hand sliding down her soft back and grabbing her firm ass. Here. Dear Lord, let me be buried right here. When he kissed her, it was with more power than he intended. Even so, Judith was quick to meet his level of passion, hands all over him as if she had to touch every inch before she died. “Would you let me have you right here, Judith?” Miguel pulled up her skirt, feeling her heat against his chilled fingers. One deft finger shoved aside her lingerie and plunged inside her, forcing poor Judith to crumble in his arms with the most exquisite moan in the universe. She’s wet already. Damn! Not wet enough to take a man like him quite yet, but she was already halfway there.
“You can have me anywhere you want, Miguel.” She sighed against his throat, both hands clutching his shoulders as one leg rose into the air. “I like a good thrill like anyone else.”
“Let me guess. It costs extra to fuck you in public.”
“Of course it does, but this isn’t public. Nobody is watching us out here. Now, for being outside…”
“How much?”
Her laughter wasn’t mirthful this time. It was a laugh of, “You get off on me telling you how much I cost, don’t you?” “Does it matter?”
Miguel took a single second to consider that. “No.”
The world no longer existed outside of his immediate perceptions. Those perceptions told him Judith Judith Judith. Her warm, firm body, both against his and wrapped around his finger, getting wetter, tighter. He would make her come from his finger alone first. Right there. In a fucking maze up in the mountains. Miguel made sure that happened sooner rather than later by drawing her nipple into his mouth and sucking as hard as he could. The way she squirmed against him, crying out in pleasure, dropping the sleeves of her dress down her arms, and slamming her bangles together in an erotic rhythm conspired to make Miguel so hard that he could barely stand it.
She came, unexpectedly to her, although Miguel felt her tighten around his finger until it would be heresy to pull it out. Her arousal flowed from her, on his hand, down her leg, on her dress. All her. Not even a drop of him.
“Holy shit,” she whispered, kissing him when his mouth came back up to hers. “Fuck me, you monster. I want that fucking cock of yours.”
She spoke his language. That phrase is the same all over the world. He had heard a hundred women of a hundred different mother tongues say something like that. “I’m going to come inside you again.” His voice growled against her skin, eliciting another shudder of pleasure in this woman who had also known so many people in her life. Yet I’m the one making her like this right now. Judith was right. He was a damned alpha male, who wanted to make sure he was #1 in her life. “You exist to pleasure me right now, Judith. In return I’ll make you feel good too.” He finally pulled his finger out, letting her taste her own arousal as his fingertip drew a wet line against her lips. “Once I’m inside you, though, I’m not stopping until you once again know what it feels like to have me come so deep inside of you.”
“For fuck’s sake, do it!”
There weren’t many options in a hedge maze. If he was going to consume her body, he either had to shove her to the ground or find a sturdy wall to pin her against. Unfortunately, the ground looked most uncomfortable for the rough sex he intended to have, and the hedges would give way the moment he thrust too hard. That only left the nearest stone bench.
Miguel pushed Judith onto the bench, her body falling back as her legs spread open over the edge. The view it gave him, even in that darkness, was enough to make him hiss when he dropped his zipper and pulled out his cock. It was this sensitive already? Neither of them stood a chance.
Judith dipped her fingers between her legs and stroked her clit. She also massaged her breast, a sight to behold even if Miguel wasn’t already halfway to standing over her and coming. I’ll parade her through that house as I take her to her room to fuck her like a real man. They were already going to end up there later. Why not? Yet Miguel was able to hold himself back, merely gripping the base of his cock as he grabbed Judith’s leg and pulled her ass up. “Over!” he barked.
Her whole body trembled – in anticipation, he hoped – as she turned herself over on the bench, feet balancing on the ground as she spread her legs and pushed her ass into the air. The skirt of her sweater dress obscured her breasts, but Miguel didn’t need to see them. He saw her dazed demeanor, and that was enough.
He swore he said something as he sank his cock into her warmth, but his words came out a garbled mess of grunts and groans. Judith’s breath, caught in her throat, erupted in short spurts as her hand shoved between her legs and felt his length and girth enter her. That’s right. Rub your fucking clit. Miguel managed to be careful as he first penetrated her, but he didn’t want to be. He wanted to slam into her right now. To fuck her until she could no longer see the world before her. To make her bow to his mastery and swear he would be the only man for the rest of her life who could make her feel this good. She was so lost in the moment that it would probably be the truth.
Once he was in to the hilt, Miguel grabbed her hips and thrust.
He knew he wouldn’t last long. He didn’t care. This was all foreplay to the main event upstairs. He would take his time up there. Caress her. Whisper in her ear. Rub her whole body until she quivered for all eternity. Yes, yes, that’s what he would do. Later. In her room. For now, he was all about getting off and seeing his handiwork.
And making her scream.
“Holy shit!” Judith was at his absolute mercy, sliding back and forth on the bench as she grabbed the edge in the hopes of achieving some sort of leverage. It worked – and made it easier to fuck her depths. That’s not the only thing. The more he entered her, the easier it became. Soon he was taking her as hard and as fast as he desired, his grunts louder than her cries as he felt his cock quickly tighten as every drop of warmth in his body went there as quickly as possible. “Fuck me, Miguel! Fuck!”
His mind was blank. In the split second between hearing those words and coming, he had achieved absolute silence in his head.
The relieving pleasure that shot through him as he emptied himself inside her was unlike anything he had felt in a long, long time. Was it because he was more in tune with her now? Or was it because this was a more thrilling venture? Who fucking cared? Miguel had never felt this good with a woman before. Physically, perhaps, but this emotionally? Was that even possible?
Her inner walls held fast, and he did not immediately soften. This meant his cock spent more time languishing inside of her than it did fucking her, and that seemed to suit them both. Miguel relaxed his grip on her while Judith pushed herself up on her hands and looked at him with cloudy eyes. “That was… hot.”
To say the least.
When Miguel finally, slowly pulled out of her and groaned to see himself spilling from her folds, he only had one thing in his mind. Get her upstairs. Fuck her until she doesn’t know her name anymore. Make sure she never, ever forgets me.
Judith had been right about him all along. That made him love her more.
Yes. Love.
***
“Here.” A card slipped into Miguel’s hand as he dressed the next morning. His cuffs were barely buttoned before Judith draped herself across his shoulders, dressed in nothing but a silky black robe. “Consider it a token of my appreciation.”
Miguel opened his hand and saw a card announcing Judith’s availability for a patron. Bidding begins next week, huh? Interesting. A woman who acquired bids. What a woman, indeed. “What are you trying to say, exactly?”
She wrapped both arms around him, giggling. “That I like you and would like to see you more often. Not many men give it to me as good as you do.”
“You must say that to all the men.”
“Nope.” Judith released him. “Think it over though, would you? Even I have to hustle to make my income. A girl around here without a patron is a sad thing.”
“I will think ab
out it. If only so I can take you out in my cars and on my yachts.”
She batted her eyelashes at him. “To Monaco? I wanna see Monte Carlo.”
“We could go wherever you want.”
Judith excused herself to the bathroom, but by the time she would finally come out, Miguel would have to be gone. He bid his farewell and promised to see her again soon. After a night like last night… There wasn’t a spot on that woman’s body not touched by him in some fashion. She didn’t even decline to have him rub his fingers in more unconventional spots. If anything, it made her come harder. Many times.
If she was faking, she needed an Oscar. Miguel had never met a woman who could fake that well.
I’ll bid on you, Judith. Miguel headed downstairs and picked up his coat. Once I have you, will I be able to let you go down the line? Such thoughts did not become Miguel Bolivar.
Chapter 10
JUDITH
“Where the hell is she getting this figure from?” Monica flipped a paper over and stared at the chicken scratch handwriting. She then flipped it over again, glaring through her wire-frames. The only time Monica Warren brought out the spectacles was when it was soft audit time.
The taxes for the previous year were done and filed already, but the madam of the Château insisted on doing a soft audit every quarter. By “soft audit,” that meant going through the numbers her employees submitted and making sure they added up. While Judith and the others kept lots of shit off the books, there were things they were expected to submit to Monica for auditing. Judith had long learned what to and not to submit. She went ahead and submitted all on-the-book favors, but kept things such as condomless sex in her own pocket. That was one of the things Madam Monica did not like… even though everyone did it when they felt like it.
As head-girl of the Château, Judith helped with the soft audits. That sunny Monday morning was spent in the madam’s office going over figures and discussing who was doing the best out of all the girls. Judith was the only one who was ever privy to such delicate information, even though she didn’t know everything. For instance, she had never audited Grace, and had no idea how much money that woman was pulling into the business.